Amazon and AT&T’s new partnership will allow callers to connect their phones to Alexa’s voice system. However, some experts are concerned about the privacy and security of these conversations.
The joint venture between Amazon and AT&T underscores the rapid development of technologies used in smart homes, and growing concerns about invasions of our personal privacy and communications.
“I would be immediately cautious about any new method that could trigger phone calls ‘from me,’ as this would allow others with access to my Alexa device to make (or accept) phone calls on my behalf,” David Kotz, a computer science professor at Dartmouth College, told Lifewire in an email.
Kotz is a principal investigator for the Security and Privacy in the Lifecycle of IoT for Consumer Environments (SPLICE) project, a $10 million National Science Foundation research program aimed at improving security and privacy in homes where smart devices are used.